Yet ANOTHER addition to my self-defense family...

This is a discussion on Yet ANOTHER addition to my self-defense family... within the Defensive Knives & Other Weapons forums, part of the Defensive Carry Discussions category; My last batch of O.C. spray has reached its expiration date and it was as big as a soda can anyway. I don't think I ...

Yet ANOTHER addition to my self-defense family...

My last batch of O.C. spray has reached its expiration date and it was as big as a soda can anyway. I don't think I carried the thing once.

However, the more I have looked into my own self-defense, the more I have seen the need for defensive tools other than just guns. A knife has its place as does even non-lethal means of self-defense so that one does not have to decide whether or not to take the next step from confrontation to gun fight.

I've done some reading up on this stuff as well as watching a few short videos and feel its a good choice for a spray.

Because my belt and pockets are getting full (let's see... Commander sized Wilson Combat 1911, Ka-Bar TDI Law Enforcement Knife, Spare Magazine on belt, cell phone in back pocket, Kershaw in one front pocket, anther folder in the next) I've decided that the Guardian Angel is going to probably stay in my purse or coat pocket.

My belief has always been that the most important things you want the quickest access to should be on your belt/waistband, and so my belt is reserved for the gun, fixed-blade and spare mag, everything else can go in pockets and in purses.

I also believe that the more self-defense options you add into the mix, the more susceptible you can be to getting confused over which option to use in a time of need. You can waste precious milliseconds thinking about options instead of responding.

Because of that I'm in the process of formulating STRICT rules in my head about how, why, where and when I will choose one method of self-defense over the other.

So far my rules go something like this (and they are still a work in progress so bear with me):

1. If attacked physically either with fists, knife, baton or whatever, I'm going for the gun. No fooling around, no wasting time with other options. My life is in danger, I'm responding. (There may be exceptions to this rule, but this is a general rule)

2. The TDI knife is used for gun retention and last-ditch-efforts ONLY. It will not be used for utility purposes as that is why I have two other knives in my pockets. Only in extreme circumstances (such as my gun being fought over, or not being able to draw my gun) will I deploy the TDI. I carry it weak side just behind my spare magazine so that it can be draw with my weak hand. If necessary, I can deploy the knife weak-handed to protect a strong-hand draw of my gun.

3. The Spray is for any situation that may be unclear and will also be deployed with my weak-hand ONLY in case the situation escalates and I need my free hand to draw a gun. If I see someone being attacked and feel I should intervene but do not have all the information, I MAY intervene using the spray instead of a gun from a safe enough distance that I might not be caught up in a physical altercation. Even if the victim is sprayed, it's a heck of a lot better than missing with a gun and accidentally shooting a victim of an attack.

4. When unable to carry a gun, the Spray goes strong side, knife remains weak-side and the Spray takes on the role of my gun. The knife keeps its role.

So far, those are my rules. Feel free to comment on them, ask questions to get me thinking, and give your thoughts and opinions. I'm eager to hear them.

"Not only do the people who put their lives on the line to protect the rest of us deserve better, we all deserve better than to have our own security undermined by those who undermine law enforcement." -Thomas Sowell

Thats what I was wondering. Hope the OC works well for ya. You might find out if the y have a trainer version cheap, to practice aiming/using it. Sounds like you have planned ahead alright.
I use my knife in my weak hand also, it just makes more sense .

Sounds all well thought out.
I always believed that OC had a very useful place for daily Less Than Lethal carry by civilians.
Some have disagreed with me. That is fine.
It has already saved my dog from a certain attack on one occasion and that is reason enough for me to carry it.

Great idea NOT using your defensive blade for utilitarian and mundane cutting chores...unless you intend to constantly maintain a razor sharp honed edge on it.
I want mine at maximum sharpness at all times.
I sure don't want a dulled blade right when I need the cutting edge to be perfect.

Strange. I've never felt the need to have a flashlight around. To each their own.

Limatunes, I applaud your decision to get OC spray. In places you can't normally carry a firearm, I don't think there are many, if any, Virginia laws prohibiting you from keeping OC on you, and it's a LOT more effective at ending a confrontation than a knife is.

The order of location for your tools surprises me a little; even though I don't carry a firearm yet, I can't imagine my knife being anywhere but my strong side clipped to my pocket. It's been there for years and should I ever need it quickly (I hope not, it's not a fighting knife) I know I can get it quickly, and still leaves the waist level area clear for carrying a firearm. This is a lot easier to do with a folder, though, which your Ka-Bar isn't. Have you trained much yet in drawing/using your TDI for scenarios you can't carry your firearm? How about the OC spray?

First, my Ka-Bar knife goes weak-side is because my strong hand is reserved for controlling my gun (drawing, firing, retaining). That is it's primary function in the world of self defense. My dominant hand will always be reserved for that purpose.

Second, I have a weapon on each side of my body, for each hand. If I ever get pinned against something and can't draw my gun with my right hand, I can more than likely still get to my knife with my left hand and vis versa. Or, if I need to thwart off an attack with my weak hand to give me time to draw my gun with my strong side, I can simply reach back with my left hand, draw my knife and protect my strong side for a good draw.

Thirdly, (as stated) my knife is for last-ditch-efforts and gun retention. If my hand is filled with a gun, or I'm hanging on to it trying to retain my gun, or my gun is empty and I need to resort to other tactics, my hand is already full and as I only have two hands, it makes sense that my empty hand should have clear access to my knife, on my weak side.

I do carry knives (folders) in my pockets strong side and weak side and even in my back pockets but my fixed blade will always go weak-side because of the reasons listed above.

As far as training is concerned... Both my TDI and my O.C. spray are relatively new additions to my self-defense family. I've had minor instruction, and have done a lot of thorough thinking as to scenarios and why and where, when and how my knife and spray would be used.

I am probably going to a defensive knife training in Feb (if I can get the money together) and I'm pretty sure that using O.C. Spray will be pretty easy to grasp.

As far as a flashlight is concerned.. It CAN be a great tool, but like the O.C. spray it would probably find it's place in my purse or in a pocket rather than going on my belt.

As I said, my belt is reserved for things I feel I will need quickly so it is reserves for my gun, ammo and knife.. everything else takes a back seat.

Good thinking, and I see where you're coming from. Knives are very tricky things to find adequate placement for: as much as I'm itching for a HAK, for instance, I'm having a lot of trouble finding smart places to store it on my person. I don't think any amount of edged-weapon training can be overstated; they're really hard to use well and are only really effective at grapple distances. I wish you sincere luck in any training and highly recommend a training knife.